Medicinal Mushrooms of Eastern USA: Medicinal Virtues, Double Extraction and Topicals, and Foraging (VIRTUAL)

In this two-part virtual class, Dana Driscoll from the Pennsylvania School of Herbalism will provide a thorough introduction to mushroom medicine: herbal virtues, preparation, and uses, as well as how to forage for medicinal mushrooms. The class will focus on mushrooms that are commonly found in the Northeastern United States, although many of these mushrooms are also found globally. The course will cover eight different common medicinal mushrooms and two different herbal preparations: the double-extracted mushroom tincture and mushroom salves.  We will also discuss mushroom taxonomy and identification features, and wild mushroom foraging safety.

The course will be delivered as a two-part virtual synchronous Zoom-based course, with opportunities to ask questions and interact with the instructor and students between each session.  Students will have enough time between the two sessions to prepare their double-extract tincture and share results in our second session. If you cannot make one or both of the sessions, you can still sign up and we will provide a recording of the class 24-48 hours after the class ends, which you can review at any time.

As an optional part of the class, we also offer the opportunity to purchase dried mushroom kits (grown from Oak Haven Mushrooms and/or wild foraged) for both double-extraction tincture and topical use.  Information on the kits and how to purchase will be shared during the first course.

Certificate credit: 

This course counts for 2 hours Materia Medica, 1 hour stewardship and identification, and 2 hours medicine making for our 50 or 100-hour Holistic Herbalism certificate programs.

Two Zoom-Based Sessions:

Session 1: January 22nd, 6:30 – 9:00pm EST

 Double-Extracted Mushroom Tinctures and Internal Uses of Mushrooms

• Introduction to the Fungi Kingdom and Mushroom Anatomy
• Medicinal Mushrooms: Reishi Chaga, Turkey Tail, Chaga, Lion’s Mane, Oysters
• Herbal Preparation: Double-Extracted Mushroom Tincture
• Taking and Using Mushrooms as part of wellness

Session 2: Februrary 26th, 6:30 – 9:00pm EST

Medicinal Virtues of Edible Mushrooms, Mushroom Salves, and Foraging Wild Mushrooms

• Foraging for Mushrooms: Key ID features, safety, and guidelines
• Medicinal Mushrooms: Birch Polypore, Cordyceps, Hen of the Woods,  Shitake
• Herbal Preparation: Mushroom topicals and salves

About Your Instructor

Dana Driscoll is obsessed with fungi, and has been foraging them, working with them, and making medicinal preparations with mushrooms for over a decade. Dana is a traditional western herbalist, certified permaculture designer, certified permaculture teacher, writer, and botanical artist residing on a five-acre homestead in Indiana County, Pennsylvania. Dana is a graduate of the 2014 Lindera Herbal Intensive with Michigan Herbalist Jim McDonald, and has continued her herbal education since then by specializing in medicinal mushrooms and crafting wild medicines.  She has been teaching herbalism and offering plant walks in Indiana County, PA, since 2015.  As an herbalist, Dana is particularly committed to working with plants that are local and abundant and focusing on plant-based education that allows humans to reconnect and relearn reciprocal relationships with plants. Dana regularly writes for Plant Healer Magazine and Spirituality and Health magazines on herbal and nature-based topics. Dana’s favorite mushrooms are Hemlock Reishi (Ganoderma Tsugae), Apple Bolette (Exsudoporus frostii), and Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus spp.).  She is a proud member of the Western Pennsylvania Mushroom Club.

Course Cost

We offer a sliding scale for this course – $50- $120.

What is a sliding scale?  Please pay what you can afford.  People who pay on the higher end of the scale help subsidize it for those on the lower end, and everyone can take the class regardless of financial means.   You can see several options for the sliding scale below–pick whichever you want to pay.

Mushroom kits

We also offer an option to purchase a medicinal mushroom kit after our first class (local pickup or shipping).  Available mushrooms include turkey tail, hen of the woods, oyster, birch polypore, reishi, and lion’s mane.   If you are interested in purchasing a kit before the first class session instead, please reach out to us at info@paherbschool.com.